Mr. Speaker, we learned some troubling news this morning regarding public safety.

There are about 1,200 individuals who, because of breaches in public safety and security, have been ordered deported from our country, yet they still remain on our streets. This is a serious issue, because there are a lot of individuals who are known risks to security in this country.

I am wondering if the minister could update us on his efforts to remove these people from the country. Will he pledge to do so as expeditiously as possible?

Ralph GoodaleLiberalMinister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Mr. Speaker, the issue is a serious one, and we are applying all efforts to deal with the backlog.

The backlog of people awaiting removal ballooned under the former government to over 20,000, and two-thirds of current cases date back to the Harper era. The Conservatives also cut nearly $400 million from CBSA in their last term.

The total number of people awaiting removal is now lower than it was under the previous derelict government.

Mr. Speaker, many foreign nationals who committed crimes and were ordered to leave the country for security reasons are still in Canada. These are dangerous people who are living in our communities. Their numbers have swelled over the past three years, and our border officials are swamped. As of now, there are exactly 1,167 such individuals in the country, and they are a threat to the public.

The potshot from the member opposite was uncalled for, and that is what I was referring to.

Mr. Speaker, Corner Brook Pulp and Paper is a company that employs about 500 people in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador. Unfortunately, they have been hit with serious tariffs, a 32% tariff by the United States for newsprint crossing the border. Even more importantly, the U.S. Department of Commerce has instructed that the duty be applied and taken over in cash deposit.

I would like to know from the minister whether or not the government has a plan, and please do not tell me that the plan is to buy more buses.

Mr. Speaker, we absolutely have a plan in dealing with all actions by the Commerce Department against the Canadian forestry industry, and we have been demonstrating that on all of our forestry files.

When it comes to uncoated groundwood paper, we are deeply disappointed with these preliminary rates. We know that the forestry industry sustains excellent middle-class jobs, including in rural and indigenous communities. We are working very hard with our partners in Canada, with the Commerce Department, and with our fine trade litigators.

Mr. Speaker, here are the facts. First, the United States imposed countervailing duties on softwood lumber. Now it is imposing an unwarranted tax on newsprint. For the minister's information, newsprint exports are worth $1.6 billion, and the tax will affect 25 Canadian pulp and paper mills and thousands of Canadian families across the country. As the weeks go by, the government is sitting back, watching the world turn, and there is no agreement in sight, unless there is something the Liberals are not telling us.

What are the Prime Minister and his minister going to do to get the industry out of this awful situation and help Canadian families?

Mr. Speaker, we are deeply disappointed in the U.S. Department of Commerce's unjustified decision to impose preliminary duties. We are well aware that the Canadian forestry industry sustains excellent middle-class jobs. We will keep working with our partners to defend this key sector against the United States' unjust and unwarranted trade measures and practices.

Mr. Speaker, household debt has reached a new record high across the country. The burden is hard to bear, especially for women. The Liberals boast about being feminists, but they have no measures in place to alleviate the economic burden on women in Canada. There is no child care system or investment to ensure equal pay. There is nothing to counter the housing crisis.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to be part of a government that is working hard for the middle class and helping more Canadians join it, particularly from a gender equality perspective, as women have an important role to play in leading this inclusive growth. Over the last two years, we have implemented major policies that are transforming the quality and accessibility of child care, as well as a Canada child benefit that primarily benefits women across Canada. We are going to continue to work very hard with that in mind.

Mr. Speaker, a massive economic burden is being placed on the shoulders of Canadians, and this burden continues to grow. Half of Canadians are $200 away from not being able to pay their bills, and they are taking on increasing levels of debt.

In the meantime, the Minister of Finance claims that the economy is doing very well. Obviously, he and his friends are the only ones benefiting from this economic growth.

How can the Minister of Finance assess our country's economy for Canadians when he does not even have a tool for calculating and assessing the consequences and risks of Canadians' household debt?

Mr. Speaker, if the opposition member takes a look at our record over the past two years, he will see that we have made a sustained effort to reduce inequality and to ensure that those who need it most have the most at the end of the month. One example in budget 2018 is the new Canada workers benefit, which will help lift tens of thousands of low-income workers out of poverty. This is in addition to the indexation of the Canada child benefit, which, as members know, gives nine out of ten Canadian families an average of $2,300 more a year, tax free. This is part of our goal to make our society fairer.

Mr. Speaker, eight-year-old Olivia Little from Port Elgin, Ontario, has been rejected by Health Canada twice for access to the life-saving drug Cystagon through the special access program. Luckily, Olivia has her family to fight for her, and fight government bureaucracy every three months for access to this life-saving medication.

Why is the Liberal health minister making access to life-saving medications difficult for most vulnerable Canadians?

Mr. Speaker, our government recognizes the importance of Canadians having access to safe effective treatment such as Cystagon for rare diseases. We are committed to improving the affordability, accessibility, and the appropriate use of medication, and have proposed amendments to the Patented Medicines Regulations in order to prevent excessive prices for patented drugs, including those for rare diseases.

Health Canada's special access program continues to consider requests for access to treatment for patients with cystinosis when marketing drugs are not medically suitable.

Mr. Speaker, it gets worse. Hundreds of Canadians, including 10-year-old Evan Palmer, in my riding, suffer from spinal muscular atrophy, a life-threatening rare disorder. Bureaucrats have approved Spinraza, but only for the most acute cases, using one clinical trial study of one subgroup.

Most children who suffer from SMA are being denied. Vulnerable Canadians with SMA are at the mercy of bureaucrats and the health minister, who are ignoring the evidence. Will the minister commit to overruling her bureaucrats so that Evan and other SMA patients can get the medicine they need?

Mr. Speaker, Health Canada is committed to providing access to safe and effective therapeutic products, including products to meet the needs of patients with rare diseases.

Spinraza was reviewed as a priority and approved for treatment for patients with spinal muscular atrophy in the summer of 2017. As with all medications, the responsibility for decisions regarding funding and reimbursement lies primarily with provinces and territories.

Mr. Speaker, a six-year-old girl from my riding came back from the Caribbean with a hookworm infection. Although three doctors, from Sarnia, London, and SickKids in Toronto, said that the girl needed albendazole, she was turned down by the government's special access program. This is not an isolated case.

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to improving access to necessary prescription drugs and ensuring that products on the Canadian market remain of the highest quality. To that end, our department has recently launched an initiative to improve the regulatory review of drugs and devices. It is a major effort to increase the availability of prescription drugs, including drugs for rare diseases. This initiative will help improve access to the therapeutic products needed to better meet the needs of the health care system.

Mr. Speaker, in my riding of Miramichi—Grand Lake and across Atlantic Canada and Quebec, people who work in seasonal industries are feeling the effects of the so-called “black hole” in employment insurance.

We know that the government supports seasonal workers, that it reversed the changes made to the EI system by the previous government, and that it announced targeted funding in budget 2018 to support affected seasonal workers.

Can the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development explain to the House how the government is committed to helping these vulnerable Canadians?